A case of wuss-itis

According to Ian, that’s what I have.

But yes, after running a grand total of SIX TIMES in the past couple of weeks, I am down for the count. Awesome!

The first four runs were fine, although I realize now that’s probably where I did the damage. Apparently it’s a bad idea to just get out and run, without stretching or caring about footwear or running surface, when you’re 31 years old and not athletic.

After my painful run on Friday, I gave myself some time off (and a new pair of shoes). I thought three days were enough, but apparently not for this old lady. I ran again last night, and while I felt OK after I got going, as I approached 2.5 miles the pain in my left knee started up again so I cut my run short.

I iced my knees for about an hour, but when I woke up this morning I could barely walk. My right knee just feels tight and sore, but I can’t really put any pressure on my left knee without feeling pain. I’ve indicated in the picture where the pain is (on the inside, toward the bottom of the side of the knee), in case there happens to be any orthopedic doctors out there who want to save me some money and diagnose me over the Internet. Bill Frist? You there? Can you see through ice packs?

Anyway, I have several friends who are real runners, and they’ve been pretty supportive via Facebook. It’s been suggested that I don’t see a doctor quite yet; that I give myself one to two weeks off before I start again, and that perhaps having the right shoes will help. So I guess that’s what I’m going to do: Just wait it out. Which sucks, because I have these awesome, comfy brand-new (EXPENSIVE-ASS) shoes that are just going to sit in my closet now.

But I don’t want to mess up my knees for real, so I suppose resting is the best idea.

Seriously though, six runs? What’s the opposite of the Bionic Woman? Because I’m pretty sure that’s who I am.